Saga of the Sword
by Matthew Holland
Summary: A more in depth look into Sanctuary 100 years after the defeat of Baal. Three teenagers must face the threat of the Prime Evils, ressurected by a sinister darkness. EMAIL ME IF THERE IS ANY GRAMMER ERRORS!
1. The Ressurection

Chapter I  
  
I sighed in utter hopelessness, looking around the small, dark, cell that held 2 other people and me. I am named Ryu. Ryu Kisargi. Me, my sister, Summer, and one of our friends, Riku Savrem, were abducted about a day and a half ago. It was a normal day, then as we were leaving school, a roving band of lizardmen came up behind us, knocked us out, and with frightening speed, took us to the heart of their underground city, Kabraxis. All I did was lean against a wall, Riku medataited, and Summer paced back and forth, because she thought they were gonna kill us or worse. She finally sat down, laughing. She said, "Well, it could be worse. They could've tied us up or something." About two minutes later, five lizardmen came in, one carrying a coil of rope, another carrying 3 amall vials, and the other two seemed to be carrying chains. After me and Riku gave Summer the evil eye, they backhanded us, and in our daze, they bound our hands and feet with incredible speed. They laughed slightly, forcing the contents of the vials down our throats, and it was determined that it was a sleeping potion, and we drifted into a deep sleep, and we were carried off, to an uncertain location. Several hours later, we awoke, chained to separate altars, and we began to protest loudly, and an extremely loud voice yelled "QUIET!" Of course, we immeaditely shut up to this suprisingly human voice. We then heard footsteps, and I strained to see a human, dressed in ornate robes. He laughed loudly, saying "Exellent. The Chosen, The Innocent, and the Defiled! Your blood shall fuel this final act of blasphemy against your pitiful gods! The Three will walk this earth with your blood starting their first breaths! My brothers, let us begin!" About right after he said that, three lizardmen dressed in ornate robes pulled out ornate daggers with curved blades. They slit our wrists, letting blood flow onto the altars, and while we were screaming in pain, a earthquake rocked the small temple, caving in parts of the roof, the moon becoming visable, then a spire of flame erupted from the center, and I heard Riku yell, "WHAT IN THE HELL IS THAT?!' and I heard dark, hollow laughter and blood-curldling screams. The chains that binded me finally gave way and I got up, sort of weak from the blood loss, and I saw three gaurgantan figures, horns and other appendages jutting from their humanoid forms, one of them looked at me and I froze in terror, shuddering slightly as it said, "Heh, so this is the Chosen One, he is nothing but a mere boy! My brothers, shall we destroy him now?" One of them chuckled slightly and said, "Baal, why should we waste what little power on him anyway? He isn't worth it." The one he called Baal sighed and stalked off, saying "He is mine anyway." and a large door opened, and the three walked out, laughing slightly. I rummaged through the lizardmen's dead bodies and eventually found a crude broadsword, and I cut Riku and Summer free, and we tried our best to heal our wounds, then I began to walk to the door where they went and Summer said, "Are you insane!? They'll kill you!" I sighed and looked back, saying "I've gotta try, otherwise they might destroy everything we know." She sighed, grabbing a long stick that used to be a torch, saying "I might as help then." The only thing that Riku did was laugh after grabbing a lizardmen's bow and some arrows, saying "You owe me one for this Ryu." and we walked through the door and down a large passage, and we heard an insane, dark laugh that made us freeze in place. The one called Baal was standing there, looking at us in amusment. The only thing he did was send spires of flame from the earth, and that easily dispatched us. He laughed again, and picked me up by the throat, as I struggled in vain, he laughed wildly, and threw me to the wall, and I, I just snapped. I felt some strange energy flowing through my body and I sent a beam of light into Baal, then somehow, Summer, Riku, and myself were teleported out of that place. I didn't know where we landed, because we were knocked out by the fall. 


	2. The Mission

Chapter 2  
  
We slowly woke, blinded by the light of the midday sun. I heard Riku mumble, "What the hell happened, and where are we anyway?" I responded, as if recalling something long-forgotten, "The continent of Avarion, not far from Kabraxis." Riku and Summer looked at me like I was crazy, then we heard a dry laugh, and as we spun around, our hands still clutching the pitiful constructed weapons we held, and we heard a voice saying "I cannot be killed by those pathetic things, much less injured. You have no need to fear me, for I am not evil, like Baal and hs brothers. Look at me, and hear my name, I am Lazarus, a Plainswalker. I have been wating for you three, the Chosen, the Innocent, and the Defiled. You three, and only you three, can combat the evil ones and emerge victorious." The only thing we did was look at him like he was insane, and he chuckled slightly, saying "I will train you in the arts of war, so do not worry, for you will be prepared against this momentous task. First, I will tel you of the Coming of the Three and the War of the Light." We sat down and I nodded, saying, "Well? Are you going to speak?" He nodded and gasped slightly, and began speaking. "This world was brought into existance by several gods, and after the task was done, they died, leaving only 2 left. Chronos, the god of Light, and Magus, the god of Darkness. Chronos's and Magus's armies fought for this world, then Chronos made Humanity, and three heros rose up among the ranks of the humans, bearing weapons forged by Chronos himself, Avarion, the blade that shatters evil, Draconis, the staff that brings the light into form, and Windforce, the bow that send thousands of arrows at once, sending a wind of pain at the enemy. They destroyed Magus, splitting him into three forms. That signaled the Coming of the Three. Diablo, the Lord of Pain, Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred, and Baal, the almighty Lord of Destruction. The three heroes sealed them after a fierce battle that took many lives, including Chronos's himself." Summer intruppted him, saying "But, some people still pray to Chronos, I thought he was still living somewhere!" Lazarus responded, "They took Chronos's life because no god is immortal, he ascended to a higher plane and became a true god. Now no mortal can touch him." Summer nodded and he continued, "They came back suddenly, and nearly destroyed this world. The three heroes were outmatched and killed by a massive army of demons. Then, in the midst of the battle between the Three's armies and the last alliance of the humans, Chronos himself appeared and sealed the Three, for all eternity, or so we hoped. This world, that you call Avarion, is in reality called Sanctuary. You are the descendants of the three legendary heroes, whose names were lost in the sands of time. Ryu, you are destined for Avarion. Summer, you are destined for Draconis, and Riku, you are destined for the Windforce. After a few months, you shall journey to the various points where the weapons lie, alone." I looked at him and yelled "What?! We usually stay together!" Lazarus laughed again and pointed to the north, where a dark cloud began to gather, "The Three has already began to return, and for your lives to be normal again, they must be defeated." We looked to the north and nodded slowly, and I said, "What must we do?" And Lazarus led us to his house, mumbling under his breath. We changed clothes, and left the house, waiting on Lazarus and our future. Three months later. We were ready, we thought, so all of us confronted Lazarus and he laughed, saying, "You're ready are you? Then ready some supplies and what weapons I've given you, you start out in one hour." We did so, and he took me aside, saying, "Avarion is the hardest of the three to get, good luck Dragonslayer." I looked at him like I was crazy, then he met us at the gate of his forest, and led us to three roads. I took the middle, Summer took the left, and Riku took the right. Thus began our journey. 


	3. The Chosen One

Chapter 3 As I kept walking down the beaten path, the sun began to set, so I gathered firewood, killed a rabbit and cleaned it, and I set myself up a comfortable camp. As I was eating some grilled rabbit, I heard a piercing scream through the night, and I drew the stout sword Lazarus gave me. I stood up, and began to cautiously walk to the source of the scream. I saw a girl, not much oldern than Summer, being besieged by goblins with long spears, I charged into the fray, killing most of them, I groaned in pain, feeling one of their spears going into my side with it's final blow. I saw the girl rushing twoards me before I blacked out. I woke up suddenly, bandages on the wound, in a small house. My equipment and what little money I had on a table beside me. The girl was resting nearby and woke with a start, saying, "Well, you've finally awoken. My name is Karsi; I am a priestess of Chronos. I have brought you to my small home in the town of Carbana, to the north from your path." I replied simply, "Thank you for your help Karsi, I am Ryu, Ryu Kisargi." She nodded and helped me up, then took off the bandages. She said, "You should walk around the village for a while, we have an exellant blacksmith and one of the most revered elders of Sanctuary, Deckard Cain. Him and the blacksmith were a couple of the ones who helped kill the Three." I replied, "Yes, I shall visit them then." I did not tell her of my mission, for I didn't want to trouble her with my destiny. I gathered my belongings and left the small cottage, Karsi giving me a small bag filled with healing herbs, as she gave it to me, she said, "Just in case warrior, I feel that you will feel the need to use these. Just eat them and whatever wounds you have, no matter how grevious, will be healed." I nodded, walking off into the general direction of the village, Carbana. As I walked in, I was amazed at the simplistic life of these people, and I asked where the elder stayed, and I was pointed to a house in the far north. Before I went to the house, I went to the blacksmith that Karsi mentioned, and I bought a small hauberk of steel plate armor, and the owner, one of the legendary heroes, asked me what that was for. I replied simply, "I walk into the maw of evil, and I need protection." He noticed something as I was putting it on, a birthmark of a rising pheonix that I usually keep secret, only Summer knew about it, because she has the excact same birthmark, even though we're 2 years apart in age. He led me to the back room, and asked, "Tell me, has the Three been ressurected? Are the rumors true?" I could do nothing but nod slightly, and he shuddered in fear, saying "Chosen One, come with me." And he led me through a hidden passage to a small room with a single armor stand with a cloak behind it. He said, "This is Arkaine's Valor, the legendary armor of the one who turned the tide of the Light War. I give it to you, along with a fine cloak that repels all elements from the flame of a dragon to the ice of the barbarian northlands. Use them well." I nodded and we walked out, and he said one thing before I left, "Use caution, for they draw their powers from hell itself. Good luck Chosen One, the Dragonslayer." I then walked to the elder's house, and I was greeted with the warm scent of venison cooking. I knocked, and an old man that had the vitality of a child answered, saying, "Welcome, welcome! Have your dinner here traveler, and let us share epic tales, for I haven't seen any new people for 30 years!" I chuckled to myself and he led me to a table where the food was already set, as if he was expecting me. When we got our drinks, I asked him about his past, and he began to talk. "I am Deckard Cain, last of the Hordriam, an egimatic race of wizards that died out long ago. I have seen the first falling of the Three, and most of the recent wars and battles that followed. What do you wish to hear about?" I said, "I wish to hear about the final binding of the Three, and the loss of the Worldstone." Cain sighed, and said, "That caused dark, dark times for this world, and from what I hear, many others. When the blacksmith from this village killed Baal, the archangel Tyreal destroyed the Worldstone, therefore lefting the rift between this world, heaven, and hell. Now, demons freely roam the countryside, but the archangels help us by keeping most of them at bay. If only the Chosen Ones would appear, then this world might be at peace. By legend they are called "The Chosen, The Innocent, and The Defiled." By the Chosen, they mean the one who weild the power of the gods. By the Innocent they mean the one who has the most holy of hearts, the one who wield the powers of light. And by the Defiled, they mean the one who weild the powers of darkness." I looked at him and he smiled, saying "Yes Ryu, I know who you are and that you are chosen for Avarion. I have it here, in a cavern far below this house. Sadly, demons have invaded the caverns below. You should be able to do this, with my help. Finish your meal, for we set out after the midnight hour." We finished our meal and rested until midnight, then he led me down a hall and down an old stairway, into a large room with a door with a symbol on it. I said in awe, "This-This is." and he replied, "Yes Ryu, this is the Forsaken Sanctuary, where King Leoric of old wasted away and Diablo was first ressurected. This is where Avarion lies, in the fifth level." He placed a hand on the door and began to chant silently, the door slowly opening. We walked in, into the darkness. After what seemed to be hours of chopping and hacking our way through, we finally reached the fifth level, and we heard an enormous roar. We looked behind us to see a great dragon, and I tore off my normal cloak to reveal Arkaine's Valor and the cloak that the blacksmith gave me, and I rushed at the dragon, turning the flames aside with the cloak. I drove the sword deep into the dragon's side, and he sent flames at Cain, bringing him down. In a rage, I went into a frenzy that killed the dragon and broke the sword. I threw down the hiltshard of the sword and ran to Cain, and he said, "I-It's too late for me Ryu, just pull the sword." I shook my head, taking out some of the herbs from the bag that Karsi gave me, forcing them in Cain's mouth. Afterwards, he coughed, smiled, and got up, using his cane for support. I smiled, he pointed to a momunent to the north, I walked to it, I saw a magenficant sword imbedded in it, and I walked to it. Setting my hands on the hilt, I began to pull it out, and a great light began to pour from the momunent, and it fell apart as I pulled the blade out. It felt light as a feather, and perfectly suited for my use. I looked on the hilt, and I saw the name "Avarion" engraved on it, and I heard Cain say, "Good luck Chosen One, you'll need it." We left the catacombs and I began walking back to the crossroads and Lazarus. 


End file.
